Arthritis/rheumatic Disorders

The researchers, after adjusting for potential confounding factors, found that RA patients who received the influenza vaccine had reduced risk of hospitalization for septicemia, bacteremia, or viremia.

The 16-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter, parallel-group study included 698 patients who were randomized to 3 treatment groups: 2 doses of tanezumab 2.5mg; 1 dose of tanezumab 2.5mg followed by tanezumab 5mg, or 2 doses of placebo; each injection was administered once every 8 weeks.

Although many NSAIDs must be taken every 4 hours, some come in long-acting or extended release forms. These can be taken as infrequently as once per day, which may be desirable for patients taking multiple medications.

The case involved a 68-year-old female patient with rheumatoid arthritis on methotrexate 10mg weekly who presented to the emergency department with complaints of lethargy and weakness after being prescribed a 2-week course of TS for a bacterial skin infection.

When the analysis was limited to studies that examined bDMARDs vs no-treatment placebo controls, bDMARDs had a substantial benefit on physical health, measured by the Physical Component Summary, compared with mental health.

Approval of the SC formulation for this patient population was supported by data from the Phase 1b JIGSAW-117 trial, a 52-week, open-label multicenter, pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic bridging study (N=52) that aimed to determine the appropriate dosing regimen of Actemra SC based on body weight in children with PJIA.

The researchers found that 15.4% of the patients developed a fracture during follow-up. Yearly fracture incidence varied from 3.7 to 9.9%, peaking during years four and five at 9.9 and 9.8%, respectively.

The authors examined data from 8887 individuals who began TNF antagonist treatment for an autoimmune disease from 2001 through 2010 and were followed through 2012; 52% of these patients were screened for HBV before treatment.

Patients who received a repeat Zilretta injection experienced a 64% improvement in Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC)-A (pain), a 66% improvement in WOMAC-B (stiffness), a 64% improvement on WOMAC-C (function), and improvement represented by a doubling of the KOOS Quality of Life subscale score by Week 4.

The panel's decision was based on four Phase 3 studies which evaluated the impact of baricitinib on RA signs and symptoms, physical function, joint damage progression and other patient-reported outcomes.

The researchers found that the age-adjusted prevalence of arthritis was 24.7% (OA, 9.7%; RA, 4.2%; other arthritis, 2.8%). Over the study period the prevalence of OA increased from 6.6 to 14.3%, while RA prevalence decreased from 5.9 to 3.8%.

For this study, researchers used the Veterans Affairs electronic medical record databases to identify unique dispensing of methotrexate, leflunomide, sulfasalazine, hydroxychloroquine, tumor necrosis factor inhibitors, and prednisone in order to assess the effect of these treatments on systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP and DBP), as well as incident hypertension among RA patients.

Data added to the labeling includes first-of-their-kind pharmacokinetic studies demonstrating negligible to low transfer of CIMZIA through placenta and minimal transfer to breast milk from mother to infant.